Working Paper: NBER ID: w28798
Authors: Erik P. Gilje; Michael D. Wittry
Abstract: We study how ownership structure, in particular public listing status, affects workplace safety and productivity tradeoffs. Theory offers competing hypotheses on how listing related frictions affect these tradeoffs. We exploit detailed asset-level data in the U.S. coal industry and find that workplace safety deteriorates dramatically under public firm ownership, primarily in mines that experience the largest productivity increases. We find evidence consistent with information asymmetry between managers and shareholders of public firms, and ties of private firm ownership with local communities being first-order drivers of workplace safety and productivity tradeoffs.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: G30; G32; G34; J24; J38
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| public firm ownership (L32) | workplace safety deterioration (J28) |
| public firm ownership (L32) | productivity increase (O49) |
| workplace safety deterioration (J28) | riskier practices (K42) |
| coal price declines (Q31) | managerial decision-making pressure (D91) |
| proximity of firm headquarters to mines (L72) | safety outcomes (J28) |
| regulatory oversight intensity (G18) | safety-productivity tradeoff (J28) |